OK! Now I'm angry. ~ CA taxes! (Mecca: how much, house, buy)

[MotleyCrew]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Yesterday we finished having our taxes done. In 2009 we were part-time residents of California (8 months) and part-time residents of Missouri (4 months), having moved in early September. Additionally, we took some distribution from an IRA and purchased a new home.

Lo-and-behold, while MO only taxed us on earnings and distributions beginning in September, CA taxed us for the entire year of our retirement income because it originated in California. Almost a decade ago the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against California regarding their "source tax." Until then it was CA's policy to tax any earnings, including retirement funds, that originated in CA regardless of how long you'd lived out of state.

Looks like CA found a way to make an end-run around the ruling for anyone who spent even just part of the year in the state.

Why aren't I surprised?

The good news is, today I write the check and send them the tax return. That will end CA's ability to tax me forever. It gives "Tax Freedom Day" a whole new meaning!

After being in AZ for 5 years good old CA decided we did not pay enough in our income taxes for the last year we were there. We thought "oh sure" but wrote them a check for $356 and considered it a charitable contribution to such an "bleeped" up state. So glad to leave that mess behind.

[Happy Cells]

Oh YEAH BABY!

Might as well move to Athens.....

...how do you say "Gyro" in Spanish?

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by MotleyCrew

After being in AZ for 5 years good old CA decided we did not pay enough in our income taxes for the last year we were there. We thought "oh sure" but wrote them a check for $356 and considered it a charitable contribution to such an "bleeped" up state. So glad to leave that mess behind.

LOL! Our check was somewhat over $1,300 but that SHOULD be the end of it.

We appreciate the state retirements we have and the benefits but other than those, we don't want to deal with them anymore.

[Curmudgeon]

Originally Posted by Happy Cells

...how do you say "Gyro" in Spanish?

Taco!

[mateo45]

Originally Posted by Charles

Your tax dollars at work:

California Spent More Than $42,000 to Fight Nudists, Based on Two Known Complaints. The Orange County Register reports that state officials spent more than $42,000 battling a group of nudists who wanted to keep a portion of San Onofre State Beach as a clothing-optional area. Nudity on public beaches is illegal, but had been accepted at this beach for decades, prior to a June 2008 crackdown that led to litigation.

School District Paid $720,000 for Pizza Machine, Then Took Pizza Off School Menu. The San Jose Unified School District paid $720,000 in 2006 for a machine that was supposed to churn out 800 pizzas a day to sell on various campuses in the district. But the San Jose Mercury News reports that the machine has made only 2,000 or so pizzas in the two years it has been in place. (Cal-Tax: At a cost that works out to $360 per pizza, let's hope the kids got extra cheese and generous toppings.)


IRS Auditor Pleads Guilty to Cheating on His Taxes. An IRS agent who conducts audits of taxpayers has agreed to plead guilty to cheating on his own taxes, the Associated Press reported March 31.

Jury Says State Must Pay Motorcyclist $8.6 Million for Collision With Pig. A Monterey County jury has ordered the state to pay $8.6 million to a motorcyclist who sued the state for damages for injuries sustained when he collided with a wild pig on Highway 1. The jury ruled that the state was responsible because officials knew that wild pigs regularly crossing a stretch of the highway were creating a dangerous situation, but they did nothing to address it.

the motorcyclist was intoxicated when the crash occurred, pointing to a test showing his blood alcohol level was 0.10 percent,

Jurors also awarded $500,000 to the motorcyclist's wife for loss of consortium. (Source: San Francisco Chronicle, March 28.)
*

Taxpayers Paying Handsomely for Expert Witness ...the paper notes that a physician and professor of medicine testifying for Caltrans said he was paid $8,000 by the state government, plus $1,000 by the motorcyclist's attorneys, for one day of giving depositions. The newspaper points out that the motorcyclist's attorneys hope to recover their payment, and everything else they've spent on their case, from taxpayers.

"At $9,000 for a single day of work, that means the professor believes he's worth $2.3 million per year," the editorial says. "How on earth did these fees get so high?" (Source: Carmel Pine Cone, March 20.)

Source: Waste - Strange but True

I'm always curious why folks who don't even live here are so fascinated with bashing Cali. But like that saying about "people who live in glass houses", here are some of the laws they have in Alabama...

"It is illegal to wear a fake moustache that causes laughter in church."
"It is considered an offense to open an umbrella on a street, for fear of spooking horses."
"Dominoes may not be played on Sunday."
"You can marry your own family member."

and my favorite,
"Men who deflower virgins, regardless of age or marital status, may face up to five years in jail."

Which I presume makes every woman in AL an accomplice to a "crime"!

[Mach50]

Originally Posted by Happy Cells

Oh YEAH BABY!

Might as well move to Athens.....

...how do you say "Gyro" in Spanish?

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Taco!

Tacos de carne de cordero

Change thread title to: OK! Now I'm hungry.??

[EscapeCalifornia]

Originally Posted by mateo45

I'm always curious why folks who don't even live here are so fascinated with bashing Cali.

I'll wager Charles has spent more time in California than you have.

[DMenscha]

Originally Posted by Curmudgeon

Yesterday we finished having our taxes done. In 2009 we were part-time residents of California (8 months) and part-time residents of Missouri (4 months), having moved in early September. Additionally, we took some distribution from an IRA and purchased a new home.

Lo-and-behold, while MO only taxed us on earnings and distributions beginning in September, CA taxed us for the entire year of our retirement income because it originated in California. Almost a decade ago the U.S. Supreme Court ruled against California regarding their "source tax." Until then it was CA's policy to tax any earnings, including retirement funds, that originated in CA regardless of how long you'd lived out of state.

Looks like CA found a way to make an end-run around the ruling for anyone who spent even just part of the year in the state.

Why aren't I surprised?

The good news is, today I write the check and send them the tax return. That will end CA's ability to tax me forever. It gives "Tax Freedom Day" a whole new meaning!

For the last year the information was available (2005) You in Missouri received $1.36 back for each federal tax dollar paid. California got $.78 back.

The Tax Foundation - Federal Taxes Paid vs. Federal Spending Received by State, 1981-2005

[SOON2BNSURPRISE]

All I know is both the state and the feds feel that I am wealthy because I no longer qualify for any of their little credits. Funny because we never got the memo that we had made it in life.

[mateo45]

Originally Posted by EscapeCalifornia

I'll wager Charles has spent more time in California than you have.

If I figured you would (or could) pay up, I'd take that wager.

BTW, if you're that unhappy here ("EscapeCali"), how come you haven't joined him?